In this article, we will cover what's wrong with western meditation, how to fix your practice, and why it's so important to attaining Awakening and Enlightenment.
"I’ve been meditating for years, but if I'm being honest, I don’t really enjoy doing it. I meditate because I think I’m supposed to, but I mostly find it boring and it is not something that I like to do.
Will I ever enjoy doing it, or is that not the point?" - Anonymous
If you can relate with the question above, then I have good news, I can tell you why: it's because you've been taught how to meditate incorrectly. Boredom (or even having a restless mind) is a guaranteed sign that you aren't actually meditating, it's a sure sign that you're just sitting still...and yes, that's boring. I understand that some practitioners aren't going to like reading the rest of this, because they have developed their own views and notions, but allow me to explain as this goes against the rote teaching in the West and there is a lot to gain from keeping an open mind on this subject; so let's dive right in!
(Warning: the text that follows may be considered seditious and incendiary. That is not the intent; the intent is to highlight and correct in no uncertain terms.) COMMENT: Huh, so, I was taught to meditate wrong?
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Each one of us has the seed to be unshakeably happy and peaceful; and you don't have to be a Buddhist to have it. (Alternate Title: Connecting with your inner-goodness cultivates happiness)  In this article, we will cover what Buddha Nature is, how to recognise it, nurture it, cultivate it, and leverage it for happiness and Enlightenment. Buddha nature is not extensively covered in most popular Dharma books and many practitioners have only a loose understanding of the topic.
As with all of the "big" topics in Buddhism, Buddha nature is deep and profound and entire volumes are written on this topic. This article serves to introduce and re-enforce the concept for those who are newer to the idea or would like to learn a bit more about it and how it can benefit their practice. The more you practice, the more you will come to recognise the qualities of Buddha nature flowing from you and the clearer and more practical your Buddha nature will be to you. So what is "Buddha Nature"?  Great question, compassion and pity are quite commonly misunderstood. And this is equally relevant to both Buddhists and non-Buddhists alike.
While entire schools of Buddhism are anchored on the concept of compassion, and many compendia have been written on the topic, here's an easy way to spot the difference: Why is thinking about Death is so important to Buddhists (and can it help you)? - Buddhism Explained5/13/2020  Ask a Buddhist what's the number one cause of death, and the Buddhist will say: "birth."
While it's true that Buddhism has a deep interest in the subject of Death, it is just a true to say that Buddhism has a deep interest in a great number of the things that seem to plague the human experience. However, the comfort with which Buddhists can talk about Death seems to make a lot of people uncomfortable and, as a result, it gets over-played in our media and culture. So why does Buddhism have such a focus on Death?  What is Karma really? Is our life predetermined or do we have agency? And what does it have to do with who we are or what we experience? In this short article, we will cover what Karma is and what it isn't; how it relates to destiny and free-will; and, its relationship to your happiness and your peace-of-mind. Karma is one of the most widely misunderstood concepts in all of Buddhism and Eastern philosophy.
Before I start, let me get this out of the way right upfront: Karma is not a universal morality system; it's not a bad behaviour boomerang. In Buddhism, there is no God watching over anyone, rewarding do-gooders and smiting wrong-doers. So, what is Karma then?  Hi Michael, it's nice to see you again too. Thank you so much for the help. Let me see if I understand it clearly: what I usually end up doing is re-wording the meaning of the text, mainly so I can work with it in my head using my native language. So should I also meditate on the words longer in order to burn the meaning into my core? Would that would be the right thing to do if I don't need to know the exact words? - N.V. Hi N.,
Thank you for your question to clarify your understanding. We want to move away from recitations and start down the path of analytical meditation to help you get around your short-term memory issues; and rote memorisation does little for our understanding and insight, memory issues or not. So how do you meditate analytically? While there is a reason entire books and courses are written on this single topic, here is a simple process that you can use to start doing it today. First of all, what is "analytical meditation" and how is it used? |
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Michael Turner is a pre-monastic Buddhist Ariya-puggala and a deeply accomplished enlightenment trainer and dharma life coach. He emphasises and teaches the practical application of Buddhism in our everyday lives to make real progress toward enlightenment and is particularly adept at explaining them in ways that can be easily understood and practiced by Western Buddhists. He has been meditating and cultivating the techniques to generate indestructible resilience and inner-strength for more than 25 years and has helped countless numbers of people enhance their practice to make clear progress along the Path.
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